Unofficial news and tips about Google

December 4, 2008

YouTube Changes

There are many changes going on at YouTube and many of them aren't likely to improve user experience. Let's start with the search box that is displayed before playing a video in an embedded player. It was a great feature when it was displayed at the end of a video, but now you'll see it before playing the video and every time you pause it.

There's a parameter that can be added to your embedded videos if you don't want to display the search box: edit the code and add &showsearch=0 after http://www.youtube.com/v/VIDEOID&hl=en&fs=1.

YouTube updated the header and there's a new overlay that shows the duration of a video over the thumbnail. YouTube's blog says that the thumbnails will no longer be selected from the 25/50/75 points of the video's index, but they'll be selected algorithmically to minimize the impact of manipulative thumbnails.

Another change, which caused considerable uproar, is demoting videos that include suggestive content and profanity. "Videos that are considered sexually suggestive, or that contain profanity, will be algorithmically demoted on our 'Most Viewed,' 'Top Favorited,' and other browse pages. The classification of these types of videos is based on a number of factors, including video content and descriptions." Probably YouTube didn't like that the list of popular videos usually looked like this (NSFW). Users didn't understand YouTube's goal and they started to call the change "censorship".

"Algorithmically demoted... That's a nice way to make a video that is top favorited or most viewed not be in that category anymore for no apparent reasons. Angry parents and other narrow-minded people shouldn't get through with putting the pressure on youtube. Where's the freedom of saying or expressing what you want?," commented dirtbiker100890. "One of the main reasons I watch videos on youtube is because people have been able to say what ever they want, for the most part. If the youtube staff starts censoring everything then I won't have much of a reason to come here anymore," thinks GeneralCrazyIvan.

YouTube shouldn't demote a video because it includes suggestive content or profanity, but only if it uses misleading thumbnails or descriptions to artificially increase popularity. YouTube could include a preference that filters suggestive content and profanity, so the videos will be excluded from search results and the list of popular videos.

"Videos featuring sexually explicit content like real sex acts are not allowed. Other content like nudity and dramatized or implied sexual conduct may be considered sexually suggestive depending on whether or not it is intended or designed to arouse viewers," explains a help page.

From now on, videos that include suggestive content will be filtered from the lists of popular videos and they'll be age-restricted, so you'll have to confirm your age before viewing them.

Translated from the latest YouTube blog post, written in... Portuguese:

http://www.youtube.com/blog?entry=AljPPJgAJMw

<< Index of change

The Player:

- The YouTube player is bigger now: with 640x360 (16:9 ratio).- Videos as a standard, at a ratio of 4:3, will be between tracks, meaning they will be centralized in the player with two black bands on either side.

Page Layout:

- The YouTube now has 960px wide (from the previous 875px) in the Watch, Home, Search and Browse.- The page Watch DL (right side) is now 300px against 360px – the ads are better!- Banners from the "Watch Video" ("banners of the partners) to scale down its 300x45, preserving their share.

Ads in Player:

- Ads on YouTube Inviolability are centralized in the player.- Ads Graphics "AFV" are also centralized in the player.- Ads from Text "AFV" were "staged" to the width of the player.

Areas without changes

- The channels have not yet been staged in wide format. (But soon will be!)

I feel just as many viewers feel.I come to this website to say and here real comments.I have 7 and 4 year old children,but know how to monitor my computer.Other parents who feel that youtube is unsuitable should also monitor their computers so that their children will not see these contents.This a way to express free speech.There are ways to put controls on this site so that unmature audiences can't view them.This is an invasion upon our rights to freedom of speech and should not be allowed to happen.If you don't like youtube or the comments then don't FUCKING VISIT THE SITE!!!!It's really simple here,either you can handle peoples comments or you can't.Don't be a pussy.Take a side.Don't view youtube Dec.19th.Show your support.

i hate the missing star rating system, too. i've yet to see where anyone's complained about this, but i also wish they'd bring back the dates on the comments. there's no way to know when the last comment was made about a video. the whole thing sux, but something tells me they're going to leave it that way. i go there less and less now. time to just leave it alone.

I like the new format and the fact that people just cannot post comments on every video for example the UFO video area .Many kids and some adults were abusive with language and making jokes on these youtuber sites related to UFOs .

Now that all that garbage nolonger is seen .

We as Youtube creator of video can post a video and decide to let people comment or not and still delete those comments we deem spammming or off topic of the video posted.

The new format sucks! Some people like to customize the looks of their channel, now with the new format that's not possible. If YouTube forces us to use the new format many users will leave YouTube, just like many left ebay!